Expert on what shouldn't be in poor people's grocery carts.

tracydr

What a judgemental website. Whose business is it what in an individual's cart? We might raise an eyebrow if we see six cases of fizzy drink, but to lay them down on a website? I'd be mortified if I felt someone was judging me and my character on my shopping basket. Food stamps or not, it's irrelevant.

Folks judge the shopping baskets of others all the time. This is especially so if they know you eat a different way, or are on food stamps or a health buff or anything else they can come up with. Call it human curiosity. Very little of our food dollars are spent in a conventional grocery store so when we do shop at one, it tends to be what some might call oddities in comparison to their food choice. Looking at my cart, they may think we survive on nothing but dry beans not knowing that I'm doing a bit of stocking up. I've had some rather interesting questions but then I chock that up to living in a small town where everyone knows everyone's business.

Sounds like me. I raise chickens for both meat and eggs. We eat absolutely no processed foods. I can dry beans that I get in bulk and produce from a low-cost place that gets seconds. Milk, yogurt ( when I don't make my own), a tiny amount of meat and some seafood from the Asian grocery. I also have a garden so only buy fruits and veggies that I can't grow or that are out of season. I can or freeze our garden surplus.
My dogs and cats eat meat, which I usually get through a raw food coop for dog owners. This is supplemented by cheap sale meats from the Hispanic grocery. I'm usually the only white, blonde, English speaking person there or in the Asian grocery.
By shopping this way, I've been able to keep our grocery and pet food bill to an absolute minimum.
I try to help patients at the free clinic make better choices to improve nutrition and save money. Sadly, it's normally said to people who refuse to change.